Vanilla Twilight
by Lolsome-o-sis girl
Summary: First Wingin' It fic, so please be nice, because I may have screwed up the show from series two. Sorry. Anyway, please enjoy this strange story that I came up with. Send me any feedback you have, and...yeah. Sorry this isn't a proper summary. Also, I don't own anything Wingin' It - if I did Carl and Denise would still be together :) Rated T - use of mild cuss words
1. Chapter 1

"Oh, look! The television's working, because the television's her first priority!"

"Ha ha, Mom. That's so funny," I muttered, switching stations on the ancient set pushed up against the wall opposite me. Mom stood in the doorway, arms folded around a cardboard box marked **KITCHEN** in bold, bright blue marker pen. She rolled her eyes at me.

"Honestly, you act as if you're the one who had to carry all of this inside!"

"I'm a teenager, Mom. That's kinda, like, my job."

She sighed. "What am I gonna do with you, Carlie?"

"Yep. That's me. The socially - non- existant and cripplingly clumsy Carlie Montclaire!" _Dum, dum, dum!_

Mom chuckled from her side of the room. "Well, then, Carlie, are you gonna help me with this unpacking, or am I doing it all?"

"Well, I don't know, Mom. I mean, you enjoy tidying, after all," I teased. "I would have thought that you would be having a field day with all this freaky-doodle moving stuff. It involves a lot of cleaning."

"Ha ha, Carlie. Nice try." Mom clicked her fingers, and a box appeared in my lap, with **CARLIE** scrawled across it. "Go on. Get to work."

"Oh, but, Mom...!" I pulled my puppy-dog face. (What? It worked when I was five and wanted a biscuit!)

"Don't think you can get round me with that face, Carlie Jane Simmons Montclaire." She fixed me with her best "Mom" look.

"Fine." With a nod of my head, the TV shut off, and I lifted the box into my arms. "Uh...where's my room in this house again?"

"Up the stairs, first on the right." Mom was rolling her eyes at me again.

"Oh, yeah!" I hadn't been born with the greatest memory span on the planet.

"You've got the memory span of your father, Carlie." Only Mom could make that an insult.

"I'll have you know that I have a great memory!" I huffed.

"That's what he said too," Mom giggled.

"Meh!" I pouted. "This is so not funny!" I stomped past her and headed for the narrow flight of stairs that led up to the landing.

"Aw, don't be like that, Carlie!" Mom stood on the bottom step, grinning. "Come on, give your Mom a hug!" She held her arms out to me.

"Hmm...Well, I may come and hug you and forgive you for being so mean to a poor, innocent child..." I cocked my head to one side, pretending to be in deep thought. "If we can have ice cream for dinner, when we come back from the school visit in a couple of hours."

"Ice cream for dinner? Just ice cream?" Mom looked entertained.

"Is my forgiveness worth a dinner with just ice cream?" I asked.

"Just this once, yes, it is."

"Yay!" I raced back down the stairs, and into Mom's arms. "I love you, Mommy!"

"Yeah, yeah, don't push your luck, Carlie." Mom patted me playfully. "Go on. Unpacking."

I went back to my abandoned cardboard box, and followed Mom's directions to the small, plain, boring room that had been deemed mine. It was painted white (yawn), with thin blue curtains hanging limply by the small, square window that faced out onto the street. I dumped the box onto the single bed beside the door, and went straight to the window. Ah, the highway looked so...gravelly...from this angle...

Bored, I slumped back on the bed, staring at the gray specks on the ceiling.

_Maybe if I close my eyes for a second..._

"Carlie! We're gonna be late!"

I jumped off the bed, shrieking, knocking the box to the floor. How long had I been asleep for? I was a lightweight - when I slept, hardly anything woke me. A trait I earned from my father, apparently.

"Carlie!" Mom. Again. Only more impatient this time.

"Coming!" I pulled a scarf around my neck, stuffing my IPod into my back pocket, and hurried down the stairs, tripping on every step. Mom had to catch me when I reached the bottom.

"Okay there, baby? Ready?"

"Yeah. Ready."

"Okay." Mom clicked her fingers, and we disappeared. Oh, the joys of having an angel for a Mom...not only do I get to do awesome stuff as well, but I never have to worry about being late for school! (Well, within reason...)

I blinked. The two of us were now standing in the brightly lit main office of a small school building. A gray-haired secretary sat behind a glass counter, and so Mom went up to discuss details with her (I wasn't listening much), whilst I stared at the wall, trying to look fascinated by the flyer for old soda bottle tops.

"Miss Simmons?" A tall, balding man stuck his head out of another, smaller office.

"Yes?" Mom turned to him, while I tried to look intelligent and non-klutzy. If that was even possible.

"Principle Cooper." He held out a hand. Mom took it.

"Denise."

"And, you must be Carlie." He turned to me, shaking my hand. "Carlie...Simmons?"

"Montclaire, actually," I corrected him stiffly.

"Carlie!" Mom hissed.

"What?"

"Ah, a free thinker. That's exactly what we need around here at Kingston High." The Principle dropped my hand, and turned back to Mom. "If you want to come this way, I've got the paperwork ready..."

I held back a groan. Paperwork...almost as bad as homework.

"Actually," I began. "Would it be alright if I had a look around? I won't be long."

Principle Cooper missed a beat, before nodding, pointing to the blue door a few steps away from me.

"Through that door is the hallway, Miss Montclaire."

"Don't go far, Carlie," Mom said, protective as always. It didn't bother me that much - she had her reasons. Most of it was to do with my Dad, but, it's a long story.

"I won't," I promised, escaping through the door before she could object.

"Thank God for that!" I muttered, breaking out into the hallway. Being a Sunday, it was deserted, and I revelled in the loneliness.

In less than twenty four hours, these hallways would be stampeded with kids, and I would officially be a Grade ten student here. _Yippee!_ (Note the sarcasm there.)

I peered through the windows of every room I came to. Each one was basically the same - how was I going to remember it all? My sense of direction wasn't much better than my terrible memory.

Sighing, I slumped against the nearest door, staring up at the lights hanging down from the ceiling.

"Tomorrow is gonna SUCK," I mumbled to no one in particular, running a hand through my hair.

Of course, being me, I hadn't bothered to look inside this room. If I had, I would have seen that someone was inside. And that they were about to open the door. And that I was about to topple backwards into them.

"CRAP!" I yelled, arms flailing unattractively, as I fell into the person that suddenly had my entire weight being thrown on them.

"Whoops!"

"Oh, God, I'm so sorry!" I struggled up from the floor, almost tripping over the laces of my sneakers. "I'm such a klutz!"

"No. My fault," my victim replied. "Wasn't looking where I was going."

It was a guy in his late twenties - early thirties, at the most - with short hair and brown eyes. He was currently picking up the paperwork that I had knocked out of his hands; I bent down to help him collect it.

"Seriously, I'm really sorry," I gabbled, handing him the last of it. "I'm not really good at the whole balance thing." I felt my eyes rolling. The guy smirked.

"Me either. Know exactly how you feel."

"Huh!" I snorted, before realising that I was being quite rude - this guy was clearly a teacher. "Uh, I mean...uh, really, Sir?"

He laughed. "Seriously, you look like you're about to get arrested. You've hardly committed a crime."

"I should bloody hope not - Oops!" I bit my lip. "Sorry, Sir."

"No worries." Well, he seemed laid back enough that he didn't mind me swearing in front of him. I may actually like this teacher. "What're you doin' here on a Sunday, anyway?"

"Starting tomorrow," I admitted, as he locked his classroom door. "Mom dragged me here for paperwork and stuff. So, I got bored and wondered off by myself. I probably should be heading back, actually. I told Mom I wouldn't be going far. Uh...could you show me where the office is, please?"

"Sure. It's down here." He led me down the hallway-that-I-would-never-memorize, until we reached the door that I had come through. "There you go."

"Thanks." I pulled it open. "So, I guess I'll see you around tomorrow."

"Yep." The word popped on the letter P. I was about to go through, before he spoke again. "Wait, what's ya name?"

"Carlie," I replied, before I shut the door. But, before I did, I thought I saw something flicker across his face. Was it...surprise? Nah. Couldn't be. Shrugging, I went to the Principal's office, where Mom was.

"How'd it go, sweetie?" She asked me, as I sat with her.

"I'll never find my way around!" I moaned, miserably.

"Don't worry, Miss Montclaire. I'm sure you'll figure it out." The words weren't exactly comforting, so I nodded meekly, and tried to look reassured. Of course, Mom saw through my whole façade and rolled her eyes.

"Well, you'll be pleased to know, Carlie, that we've got all your paperwork done."

"Great," I said, not entirely sure what else there was to say other than Thank God I didn't have to sit through it all, but there was no way that those words would go down well.

"I set aside your schedule." Principle Cooper slid a sheet of A4 across the desk. "And a map of the school. And, if you really do get lost...well, I'm sure all of our students would be willing to help you out if you asked."

_NEVER gonna happen, my friend!_ "Okay. I'll do that."

Mom sent me a look - I guess I hadn't kept all the sarcasm out of my voice. But, then, she could pick up on these things with me, what with filling the role of two parents, trying to keep my mind of the hole in my life where a dad should have - but couldn't have - been.

These thoughts circled my head as we left the office.

"Okay, sweetie?" Mom asked, as we landed in our living room. "You look distracted."

"Oh, no. I'm...fine," I replied, but I didn't sound convincing. I switched to a safer topic. "So, where's this ice cream you were promising?"

Mom laughed, thankfully distracted. "Aw, man, I was hoping you'd forgotten about that."

"Like I would!"

Mom clicked her fingers, and two bowls of ice cream appeared in her hands.

"Eat up. But, don't get used to this, Carlie. It's vegetables for the rest of the week."

"Aw, man!" I took my ice cream from her and stuffed a large mouthful into my mouth. It dribbled down my chin, and I shrieked.

"Carlie!" Mom chuckled, ripping a piece of kitchen roll off for me.

"What?" I said, muffled by the large quantity of ice cream I hadn't swallowed, because a lot of it was making its way down my face.

"I hoped you wouldn't have your Dad's tendency to eat ice cream like it's becoming discontinued."

"Dad ate ice cream like I do?" _Huh. Whadda ya know._

"Oh, yeah. It went everywhere...like having a five year old," Mom smiled. But, her eyes looked wistful. I swallowed the ice cream, the mouthful suddenly too cold, too creamy, too sickly.

Mom and me...we didn't talk about Dad much. Not that it was a banned subject of conversation or anything. We just...never spoke about it. I only asked when I was desperate to know something, because, although she tried not to show it, I knew that it made Mom sad sometimes to talk about Dad. I'd never met him, so I didn't know whether that was a good thing or not.

All I knew was from what Mom had told me the rare times the conversation had fallen on the topic of my missing parental figure. Mom was an angel, but not like the ones you think of normally. She had started training to become a "full" angel (don't ask me what the difference is - Mom wouldn't tell me), but had run away before I was born. I had an inkling that I had something to do with that - no, scratch that, I knew that it was about me. See, Dad was a human, and angel-human relationships weren't exactly allowed...more like the angel got banished if they got caught. That's what happened to Mom and Dad, only Mom was allowed to stay...not that she did. She told me that she got out of there as fast as she could, as soon as she knew about me. She said that if the tribunal ever found out about me...well, I didn't even want to think about what would happen to Mom and me. That was why she was always so protective, so careful over me. Telling the wrong person the truth could be fatal. That was why I had no father, and why he was probably still living in the small town he called home, oblivious that I existed. Actually, only two people besides Mom and I knew the whole truth. They were Mom's trusted friends, people she knew for certain that she could count on.

"Are you eating that, or playing with it?"

"Huh?" I looked up at Mom, my train of thought lost. My ice cream had melted whilst I was thinking, leaving a lukewarm liquid in my bowl. "Oh. Sorry, Mom." I ate it as quickly as I could, trying not to show how much I hated melted ice cream.

"You're a funny one, Carlie Montclaire."

"Yeah. That's me," I muttered. "Funny one."

I dumped my empty bowl in the kitchen sink, before going upstairs to my room, standing in front of the full-length mirror hanging on my wardrobe. Many times, I had sat in front of the mirror, trying to find pieces of my missing parent. But, since I'd never seen him, I could only go on what elements of me clearly weren't from Mom. Like my eyes. Mom's eyes were bright blue, whilst mine were a soft brown. That could have been something...But, then, I couldn't be sure what parts were Dad's and what parts were just me. Were there any parts of Dad in me, other than my memory span and ice cream eating habits? What if there was no resemblance to him in me at all? How depressing would that be?

"Why did you have to be human, Daddy?" I said to the empty room.

The sad part was I was half-expecting a reply...


	2. Chapter 2

"Come on, Carlie, sweetie, you need to eat."

"M'not hungry," I moaned, head in my hands, unable to even look at the plate of toast and jam in front of me. My stomach churned at the mere thought of food. "God, I feel sick."

"It's just nerves, sweetheart." Mom's arms slid around my shoulders. "I know how that feels. Anyone starting a new school or job or having a new responsibility is nervous. Take me for example. Before you, I'd never even babysat or had any experience with children, and yet, suddenly, I had this newborn baby that who was depending on me to be there all the time. I was terrified! I didn't want to screw it up and be a bad parent."

"How could you even think that?" I cuddled her arm. "You're the best Mom in the world."

"I'm glad you think so." Mom smiled at my words. "Now, eat up. You'll need your strength for today."

"Ugh. Don't remind me." I let out a groan. "Can't I just go back to bed? Pleeeaaaaaassssseee?!"

"Aw, how I can I resist that sweet girly face?" Mom chuckled. "If only it wasn't illegal to cut classes..."

"Stupid law," I huffed.

"It's there for a reason, Carlie."

"A stupid reason."

"You'll miss high school when it's gone. I left early because of you, and I found out just how much I missed it. All my friends were there, and -" She cut off, abruptly, as if she didn't even want to think about it. "But, I don't need all that. You're the best thing life gave me, Carlie. The best, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good." Mom dropped a kiss on the top of my head, before moving to the other side of the kitchen for her cup of coffee.

"Mom?" I asked suddenly, hesitant.

"Yes?"

"Would...Dad be proud of me?"

Mom stood, frozen, for a few seconds, before turning back to me, expression unreadable.

"Proud of you?" Her voice wobbled, as if she was about to cry, but she walked over and pulled me into a hug. "Now, you listen to me, honey. I know for a fact that your Dad would be as proud of you as I am right now. And, if I know him, which I do, there's a subconscious part of him that is already proud of you."

"But, what if he isn't? What if there's no part of him that's part of me? I could walk past him in the street and not have the slightest clue!"

"Oh, Carlie," Mom chuckled, hugging me harder. "I look at you every single day, and every day, I see your father in you. Sometimes, I'll catch a glimpse out of the corner of my eye, and I'll think it's him. Never worry about this - you are definitely your father's daughter."

I smiled. "Good." However, a seed of doubt still lingered in my mind. Who was my Dad? Was he still alive? I loved him, even though I didn't know him - Would he ever feel the same way about me? Would he want to get to know me? Or would I just be seen as an inconvenience, a nuisance, an unwanted reminder of an ex-girlfriend? What if he had another girlfriend, a wife, other kids? Images of my possible half-siblings danced before my eyes. What if he despised me from the moment he saw me?

"Carlie!" Mom's voice brought me back to Earth. "You were miles away. What're you thinking about?"

"Nothing much," I lied quickly. "Just that I'd better get ready for school. Angel magic can only get me there so quickly."

"Well said, sweetie," Mom smiled, as I turned and hurried - as fast as was safe for me - up the stairs to get changed. When I was dressed and showered, I grabbed my backpack and raced back down the stairs, falling on every step. Mom was, of course, already dressed and presentable. She was always more organised than I was. She took one look at my hair, and chuckled.

"Oh, Carlie, come here." She picked up her brush from the sitting room coffee table and gently pulled me towards her, starting to untangle the mop-top that my jaw length, chestnut brown hair had become. She weaved her fingers through the fine strands, whilst I fidgeted impatiently.

"Be still, you little monkey," she said, giving a soft tug on one of the strands. "God, what have you done to this hair of yours?"

"Hey!" I twisted round to look at her. "It's not my fault that my hair's untameable and yours is always immaculate!" Mom's own dark curls tumbled to her shoulders - perfect, as always.

"What can I say?" She grinned at me. "Angel magic is the best hair-care product I've ever used."

I shook my head. "Mom, please, NEVER say that again."

"Aw, am I embarrassing my little Carlie?"

"MOM!"

"Okay, okay! No more cheesy sayings. Promise."

"Do you really promise?"

"Really promise. Scout's honour."

"Too bad you were never a scout, Mom."

"I know. It is, isn't it?"

"Meh!" I huffed. Mom hugged me hard.

"Have you got your schedule?" I nodded. "Good. Do you want me to beam you there, or shall I drive you?"

"Beam." Mom had to do magic like that for me - I didn't have that kind of ability, being partly human. Besides, this saved me the embarrassment of being taken to school by my Mom.

"Alright," she said suddenly. "Well, have a good day, honey." She kissed my forehead, before clicking her fingers. Before I could blink properly, my surroundings had changed from our still-bland-looking sitting room, to the front of Kingston High School. Luckily, the rest of the student body was way too interested in what their own business to notice me appearing out of thin air. Taking a deep breath, I started towards the main entrance of the building, following the line of students that was heading inside. I was about to cross over the threshold, when an arm jutted out and barred my way.

"Whoa!" I went smacking into the arm, before being dragged back by my backpack. I yanked myself free, my mother's fiery temper coming through in my voice. "What is this, the bloody international airport?!"

"Just a security check," said someone that I couldn't see. "Nothing to worry about."

"It's nice to know that Kingston thinks so highly of its student body," I muttered, as someone swiped me with a metal detector, before, eventually, letting me go. By which time, the bell for homeroom had rung and the hallways were empty. I groaned.

"I have no idea where to go!" I said to myself. My schedule said that my homeroom was Room 208, with Dr Wright. Yet I had no idea where Room 208 was. Looked like Dr Wright - whoever that was - would not be meeting me just yet.

"Hey. You alright?" Someone touched my shoulder. I turned, to see a short, blond girl behind me. She seemed friendly enough and so I risked a smile.

"Could you tell me where Room 208 is?"

"Sure. I'll take ya there. Ol' Cory won't mind if I'm gone." She grinned, gesturing to the door behind her. "I'm Alicia, by the way."

"Carlie."

"Carlie, eh? Nice. Sounds almost...mysterious."

I laughed. Me? Mysterious? Yeah. Right.

We started walking down the hallway, Alicia keeping up a running commentary of the history of Kingston High. It was like having my own personal tour guide. I didn't catch most of what she was saying - blame it on the short attention span - but I smiled and nodded along with it, making appropriate noises of response. She finally paused for breath when we reached Room 208.

"I have a feeling I'm gonna like you, Carlie," she said, grin a mile wide. It was impossible not to get caught up in her enthusiasm.

"I think I'm gonna like you too, Alicia."

"Call me Al." She turned, waving to me over her shoulder, vanishing down the stairway, like the White Rabbit in the Alice book. Trying to pluck up my non-existing courage, I pushed the door open and went inside.

The room was silent as soon as I entered, thirty pairs of eyes baring holes into the side of my face, which was currently the colour of a tomato. I glanced towards the statuesque woman at the front of the room.

"Are you Dr Wright?" I asked meekly.

"You're late."

"I got a bit lost," I admitted, cheeks still red.

"Class."She turned back to the rest of them, consulting a sheet of A4 in front of her. "This is...Carlie Montclaire, our newest addition to Kingston."

Someone started sniggering in the front row. I went even redder.

"Something to add, Mark?" Dr Wright asked, but didn't pause to let him speak. "Well, Miss Montclaire." She seemed to be smirking when she said my name. "Have a seat over there and copy the board."

I scuttled to the only available seat in the second row, sliding into it. There was already an exercise book out on my desk and I opened it, starting to copy out the facts on the board about drug use in the USA.

The bell startled me, ten minutes later, sending me scurry out of the door immediately, missing everything Dr Wright was saying. Oh well. It was my first day. I was allowed to be a little frazzled.

The next periods were survivable. In every class, there was always one who was braver than everyone else, who would come over and introduce themselves. Sometimes, they followed me to my next class, bombarding me with questions that I couldn't answer.

Alicia found me when lunch break rolled around. I bought myself an egg mayo sandwich and a soda and joined Alicia outside, slumped at one of the picnic benches, picking limply at my soggy sandwich. I'd only gotten through half of it, before I dumped it in the trash can near my seat, and excused myself from Alicia, saying that I needed to quickly grab something from my locker. I walked as fast as was polite, before breaking into a light jog.

The hallways were surprisingly empty - I guess everyone as either in the cafeteria or outside. It was almost like yesterday, except the echoes of mindless student chatter sounded from the cafeteria. I sighed. Would I ever be able to find a place here, amongst -

"YEEEEEEEEOWWWWWWWW!" I walked straight into someone's open locker door.

"Oh!"

"Owwwwwwwww..." I tumbled to the floor, groaning.

"Carlie?" I recognised the voice. I looked up, into the brown eyes of the guy that I had knocked over yesterday. I blinked up at him, trying to clear the stars from my vision.

"Oh. Hello, sir." I waved a few fingers at him.

"I think you must be jinxed, Carlie. I seem to be on a roll with injuring you."

"It's only the second time," I pointed out. "And, trust me, I've had worse." I made no effort to get up and he seemed to notice.

"Just gonna lay there, are you?"

"Well...my day won't get any better, so, I don't see why not."

"Tough first day, huh?" He sat down on the floor beside me.

"Yeah."

"I know. I've been there."

"What, did you go here or something?"

"No, I went to a school about ten miles away from here. It was called Bennett High." Bennett High...the name was familiar, but I couldn't remember where I'd heard it before. "Anyway, I came to this school two years ago. That was so hard."

"When did it get easier?"

"You just need to give it a couple o' days, Carlie. Find your feet, memorize the place."

"Right. Me? Memorize this place? With my memory span? Hell will freeze over sooner, sir."

"You sound just like I did. But, don't worry about it, Carlie. You'll enjoy yourself - Kingston's a good school."

"One can only hope so, sir. Uh, I guess I'd better get up now." The bell for the end of lunch break had sounded while we were talking.

"Unless you want to get trampled, that would be a wise choice." He held out a hand and helped me up.

"Thanks, sir."

"Where's your next class?"

"Uh, gym, I think." I know. How unlucky. "With...Mr C. Wait, who the heck is Mr C?"

"I haven't got a clue. We all call him Mr C." He held his hands up, as if in surrender. "Don't ask me why."

"Well, then, what's your name?"

"Most of the kids call me Mr M. But, you can also call me Mr MC."

I burst out laughing. "MC? Seriously?"

"My surname, I'll have you know. I just shortened it."

"To get down with the kids, am I right?"

"Right."

"Uh, Mr MC?" I felt stupid just saying it. "Where's the gym?"

"It's just down the hall, on your right. You can't miss it, Carlie."

"Please, just call me Miss M."

"M?"

"My surname, I'll have you know," I said, repeating his words. "It's too long. Remind me to spell it out for you sometime."

"So, it's...Carlie M?"

"Yep!"

He looked confused for a second, but then seemed to shake it off, and smiled at me.

"I like it," he said finally.

"I like it too, sir," I said, as I turned around and raced off to the gym in time for class. "See ya around, sir."

"See ya around, Carlie M."

"Watch it, Mr MC," I shot back, grinning.

"Watch it, CM." He cut off suddenly, confused expression back on his face. I didn't have time to question it - I was late enough for gym as it was...


	3. Chapter 3

"Alright, honey?" Mom was waiting for me in her little convertible, in the school parking lot. "You're late out, aren't you?"

"I was...late...for gym," I panted. "Mr C...made me run...ten laps."

"Why were you late?" Mom asked, as I collapsed in the passenger seat, too tired to care who was looking.

"I was...chatting to a teacher. Walked into his...locker, so..."

"Carlie..." Mom began to pull out of the parking lot, shaking her head at me. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with -" She stomped on the brakes suddenly, grinding us to a halt.

"Mom?" Her face was a mixture of panic, hurt and confusion. Her eyes searched the parking lot wildly, as if she was hunting for something, as if her life depended on it. "Mom, are you okay?" She snapped out of it, whipping her head round to face me, expression now unreadable.

"Sorry," she said slowly. "I just...I thought I saw..."

"Saw who?"

"Someone who I used to know, that's all." She shook it off, giving me a smile. Her eyes, however, were sad, as if she was going to break down into tears right in front of me. "Don't worry about it, Carlie. So, how was your first day?"

"I don't like it," I grumbled, as we drove down the highway.

"Aw, I'm sure you'll like it eventually."

"I wouldn't count on it, Mom." Especially if Mr C was anything to go by.

"You're just like your...Dad." Her voice was tear-choked now, matching her eyes. I pressed my lips together. We finished the ride home in silence - uncomfortable silence, I might add.

Mom seemed to pull herself together when we were inside the house. She smiled again, only this time, the smile reached her eyes.

"How about some toast? You look like you need it."

"Why not?" I hadn't enjoyed the half of my soggy egg mayo sandwich that I had eaten at lunch - I was starving. Mom grinned her usual, cheery grin, and bounded into the kitchen a few paces ahead of me. Suddenly, she gasped.

"How did YOU get in here?"

"Now, really, Denise, is that any way to treat a visitor?"

I recognised the voice and ran into the kitchen, almost skidding across the linoleum floor.

"Uncle Porter!"

"Hey, kiddo! C'mere, Carlie!" I ran into his open arms.

"What are you doing here, Porter?" Mom leant against the sideboard, making toast and coffee.

"Can't I just drop by to see my one and only goddaughter and her Mom?"

"No, you can't, Porter. This is you, Porter Jackson. You don't "just drop by"."

"Well, I am today," he replied, although I knew he was lying. Uncle Porter only came to see us if he had something to discuss with Mom - he was one of the few people who knew the truth about us. "I thought I'd come by and tell you all about my adventures."

"Huh! What adventures?" Mom scoffed.

"You KNOW what I MEAN, Denise." He gave her a pointed look. I knew that this was my cue to leave, and so I did, taking the toast with me. However, as I shut the door, I heard Mom's voice again, only this time furious.

"Okay, Porter, time to cut the crap. Why are you here? Really?"

"Why do you think?" His reply was sharp. I bent down by the closed door, ear pressed against the wood, listening in.

"The tribunal...I swear to god, Porter, if you've told them ANYTHING..." She didn't even bother to finish the threat. She didn't need to.

"Relax, Denise. You may be as annoying as you ever were when we were AITs, but I would never do that to you. Or to Carlie!"

"Well, why not?" Mom's voice was bitter. "After all, you wanted to sixteen years ago. You specifically said, and I quote: "HOW COULD YOU HAVE BEEN SO STUPID, DENISE?! YOU COULD HAVE SET OFF THE ALARM! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THE ANGEL TRIBUNAL WILL DO TO THE THREE OF YOU?!"."

"Okay, I admit it. I seriously considered it when you first told me. But, Denise, surely you can see how dangerous and risky this is. Raising Carlie."

"Of course I do. Do you think I'm an idiot?" Mom snapped. "Carlie is half human. A half breed of angel and human. The tribunal would kill her! They would have a field day with this!" She groaned, and I heard her slump against something.

"Denise...?"

"What?!" She sounded irritated.

"Have you...Have you spoken to him, since -?"

"No. No, I haven't since...two months before I got the hell out of there. As soon as it was obvious, when I quadrupled in size."

"No one suspected a thing, Denise."

"I know. That's a good thing. It's just...I miss him."

"I know, Denise."

"Everyday, I think about him. Every day I see him in Carlie and it's like a kick in the gut. Every night I dream about him and the family Carlie should have had. I never wanted this for her! This...this...running and hiding all the time!"

"It must be hard," Porter said carefully.

"You have NO idea," Mom muttered, before speaking at normal volume. "So, why are you here, Porter? What's happening?"

"I came here...to warn you."

"Warn me?" Mom sounded wary. "Go ahead, PJ. What do I need to be warned about?"

"Lex."

There was a clatter from the other side of the door, before Mom started talking quickly.

"Lex? What about him? He's in prison! He was to be banished! What's he got to do with anything, Porter? Why are you bringing him up now? I haven't seen him in seventeen years! I've moved on!"

"He's out, Denise. They released him."

Mom swore graphically, her voice exploding.

"You're freakin' KIDDING ME! Lex is the reason Carlie has no father! The reason the only guy I've ever loved is living somewhere in the world, with no idea that he has a teenage kid, why he thinks I was banished...why I can NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN! This is...this is MESSED UP!"

"I'm sorry, Denise. I only found out about this today. I'm usually the last to know about this stuff...y'know, with my connection to you. They think this makes me untrustworthy in some way."

"Well, you ARE still in contact with me."

"Well, yeah, but they don't know that!"

"No, and they're not going to! They are coming nowhere near my baby!" Mom's voice was panicky. "I don't care what happens to me, Porter. I couldn't care less! I just want my baby to be safe. That's the reason I left in the first place...Did...?" I heard her swallowing nervously. "Did... he believe it? The lie?"

"Every word." Porter's voice was grim.

"I hate the thought that I put him through that. I don't think I can live with it, sometimes."

"I'm sure that, wherever he is, he's happy, Denise." He sighed. "But, we're getting off topic here. Denise, you know what you need to do. You need to make plans, if the worst comes to the worst -"

"You KNOW what my plans are," Mom said sharply. "If anything happens to me, Carlie gets sent to Jane in Chicago, then you, and then, if the worst comes to the worst..."

"It takes the Angel tribunal banishing or imprisoning or even killing three people before Carlie gets to meet her Dad." My hand went to my mouth.

"You know why, Porter. I'm doing this for the right reasons. It's the only way to keep us all safe."

"Speak for yourself! If Ms Stern found out about me assisting you...well, it's goodbye Porter Jackson."

"It'll be goodbye to all of us," Mom said grimly. "You, me, Carlie...All of us."

I stopped listening after that, moving across the room to where the piano sat in the corner of the room. It was my Mom's prize possession - she loved the thing. She'd always taught me music, but guitar had always been more my thing. I'd had lessons over web cam with Mom's friend Jane, all the way from Chicago.

I sat at the instrument, quickly finishing my food, before wiping my hands on my jeans and starting to play.

_"Get up to start the day,_

_I'm movin' on, I'm movin' on,_

_I'm kickin' out the old clichés,_

_Movin' on, I'm movin' on,_

_Can I find a brand new way?_

_Today."_

I smiled. The song had always been a part of my childhood. I could vividly remember Mom playing it for me when I was younger. I continued to play, singing the second half.

_"I can make it half the way,_

_Keepin' on, keepin' on,_

_I just find repeat and replay,_

_Keepin' on, keepin' on,_

_I've just found my brand new way,_

_Today."_

"That's beautiful, Carlie," Mom said from the doorway, surprising me. I blushed, as her and Porter grinned at me.

"Thanks, Mom."

"Will you play something else for me?"

"Hm," I grinned, sharing a look with Uncle Porter. "Only if you sing." I launched into another song, chuckling. Mom blushed, before singing a few lines.

_"Woke up on the wrong side of the bed,_

_Not a darn things going right today,_

_Bad luck is the only luck I get,_

_Yeah, that guy Murphy was right."_

I joined in for the next bit, and so did Porter.

_"Okay, my friends think I'm a drama queen,_

_My boyfriend won't listen to me,_

_My car broke down, it's such a heap,_

_Bad hair day's a bad hair week,_

_My last travesty in fact,_

_Feels like this day will never end,_

_But I'm still on my feet."_

When we sang like this, it was easy to forget the conversation I had just heard. But, still, the millions of questions filled my head? Who was Lex? Why was he in prison? Who was he to my Mom? What did this all have to do with me? And, most of all, how far away was my Dad really? Three people had to suffer before I could meet him? How was that fair? I deserved to know him, and he deserved to know me.

I took a sideways glance at Mom. She seemed relaxed, laughing and chatting with Porter, but I could see the fear in her eyes. Something was going on. Something that I didn't like the sound of, not one bit.

_**A.N: Sorry it's a bit shorter than the other chapters, but this is a very important part of the story. Things are going to start getting VERY interesting (I hope.) Anyway, the songs used are from the TV show, but I don't know what episodes they are used in – I've only seen them on YouTube. Anyway, next chapter up soon!**_


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